Dr. Luca Iandoli

ICSB Academy Executive Director and Immediate Past ICSB President

“The ICSB Academy is a new program launched in 2015 by ICSB targeting graduate students in MBA, Engineering, as well as in other disciplines, for which the acquisition of entrepreneurial skills and awareness are key training objectives in their respective graduate programs. The Academy takes place in conjunction with the ICSB Global Conference.” Click here to read more.

The Vision

Create. Implement. Communicate.

The ICSB Academy provides students with a full immersion experience in the making of a new entrepreneurial venture, while exposing them to the latest developments in entrepreneurship science under the mentorship of a global team of successful entrepreneurship experts (including entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, business experts, and faculty).

This dynamic training program includes learning modules designed to take participants through the fundamental concepts (known as Core Modules), Knowledge Electives, and other tools to help them identify entrepreneurial opportunities and create a new venture. Participants in each cohort are paired with mentors and given time throughout the program to gain insights and advice on their ideas, learn from mentors’ experiences, and network to expand their professional networks.

The Offerings

Supporting a wide range of topics

What sets the ICSB Academy apart from other start-up boot camps are the resources and its absolute global nature. The ICSB Academy has drawn distinguished academicians from leading institutions of higher education from across the globe, entrepreneurs, venture capitalists, and business expert to culminate into the Global Faculty. Furthermore, case studies and success stories of real people, and learning modules on fundamental concepts and tools will help participants identify entrepreneurial opportunities.

The Global Faculty will support venture topics that include, but are not limited to:

Entrepreneurship & Sustainable Development Goals,

Clean Energy,

Social Entrepreneurship,

Entrepreneurship & Leadership,

Intrapreneurship,

Entrepreneurship & Information Technology (IT),

Entrepreneurship & Peace,

Entrepreneurship & the Arts,

Entrepreneurship & the Sciences, and

Entrepreneurship & Education.

Participants will be paired with mentors to gain insights and advice on their ideas and learn from mentors’ experiences in an ICSB Academy module known as Breakfast with an Entrepreneur.

Team formation also occurs through aggregation around preferred ideas, so participants are not required to have a new venture idea at the start.

By the end of the program, participants will have:

A proof of concept, and

Learned how to see opportunities through an entrepreneur’s eyes.

Core Modules

I Core: Innovation & Creativity

Distinguish between creativity and innovation. Learn how to brainstorm and enhance team creativity. Taught by Dr. Luca Iandoli and Dr. Ayman El Tarabishy

C Core: Customer Discovery

By following the lean start-up approach, students are provided with tools to engage with customers and get early feedback. Taught by Dr. Geoff Archer

S Core: Sell Your Idea

Teams compete in short elevator pitches to describe their potential business ideas. Taught by Dr. Silke Tegtmeier

B Core: Business Model Innovation

Provide students with examples and cases of business model innovation (emphasis on online ventures and non-profit). Taught by Dr. Katia Passerini and Dr. Cesar Bandera

V Core: Value Proposition

Students learn about what value means to different customer segments. Taught by Dr. Alex DeNoble

D Core: Utilizing Technology

F Core: Funding

Students learn about the methods of seeking and securing funding for a new venture. Taught by Dr. Roberto Parente

Nuts and Bolts

Welcome Social Event and Team Formation

Students will network to form (or participate having already formed) groups to develop a business model canvas for a specific idea.

Lean Start-Up

Use the lean canvas to articulate the venture idea under the guidance of the Global Faculty.

Breakfast with an Entrepreneur

Students learn from the experience of real entrepreneurs. Hosted daily.

Book-a-Mentor

Students can book-a-mentor and meet with them over lunch to discuss their plans and receive feedback.

ICSB World Conference

Students will be invited to attend recommended events during the conference (workshops, PDW, keynotes, etc.). The first day of the ICSB World Conference, June 28, will be hosted in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

Final Pitch Competition

Best ideas are invited to present in an ICSB World Conference plenary event to crowd-source feedback and compete for a grand prize. A further award will be given to the school representing the most successful students in the cohort.

Pitch Market

Students will be left to their creativity to pitch their ideas to the participants of the ICSB World Conference to make it to the Final Pitch Competition. They will be expected to utilize technology and social media. Their votes will be collected and announced the following afternoon.

Knowledge Electives

Knowledge Electives

How to found a start up and gaining the trust of consumers. Best Practice: VisualVest, a German Start up, Fintech Industry, founded January 2015 – Dr. Walker Ruda

Effectuation: Designing, Not Planning – Dr. Ewald Mittelstaedt

Transnational Business – Dr. Liesl Riddle

Quantifying Opportunity – Dr. Elissa Grossman

Finding Funding: The Buck Starts – Dr. Charles H. Matthews

IP Awareness Training Seminar – Dr. David T. Peacock

Start-up Valuation: How Much Is Your Company Worth? – Dr. Cesar Bandera

THE EXPERIENCE

The Experience

At the end of each cohort, participants are given a survey to share their experiences.

“Did the program provide you with materials, thoughts, and information that can be applied outside of the program?”

“It brings an interesting way of thinking to the engineering field.”

“The course was very insightful and provided great entrepreneurial ideas through its contents.”

“The presentation by the faculty was extremely practical and able to be applied from the get-go.”

Each cohort can accomodate up to two hundred participants

24

The number of ICSB Academy Entrepreneurship experts who support a wide-range of venture topics.

20%

A minimum of twenty-percent of the program agenda will be dedicated to networking and social activities for participants. The local experience is considered as an important component of the overall experience.

$500

The cost of attendance (in US dollars) for the last cohort, which includes Academy attendance and ICSB World Conference attendance.